Governor Jim Gibbons announced his selection of Teri Thienhaus as the new director of the State Department of Personnel.

Thienhaus will be moving to the Department of Personnel from the Nevada Attorney General’s office, where she is currently a Senior Deputy Attorney General working primarily in the area of personnel law. During her time with the Attorney General’s office, Thienhaus has served as the primary Deputy Attorney General for the Department of Transportation and the Department of Business and Industry, among others.

“Teri is going to be a tremendous addition to my cabinet and I’m fully confident she’ll be a wonderful head of the Department of Personnel,” Gibbons said. “Considering the diverse array of issues facing state employees, it will be invaluable to have someone with an in depth knowledge of state law. I believe she will be an excellent leader in this critical position.”

A former registered nurse, Thienhaus received her law degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Law after earning a bachelors of arts in German Studies from the University of Cincinnati. She moved to Nevada in 1995 and worked in private practice before joining the Attorney General’s office in 1999.

“I am honored to be appointed to this position by Governor Gibbons, and I look forward to working with agency directors and administrators as we take on the challenges facing state personnel in the coming months and years,” Thienhaus said. “The state’s most important resource is its employees, and our recovery from our economic problems hinges on the strength of Nevada’s workforce and the ability of the Department of Personnel to support state leadership.”

Thienhaus’ will start work at the Department of Personnel no later than Dec. 8.

The Governor also thanked Shelley Blotter for serving as interim director prior to the hiring of Thienhaus as the full time director.

“Shelley did a tremendous job, and I thank her for her service,” Gibbons said.